The TPP is a strategic planning document used to guide the vaccine development process from the earliest stages. It embodies the notion of beginning with a goal in mind and specifies the essential criteria that relate to the public health impact and suitability of a vaccine candidate. A well-designed TPP establishes the parameters for advancing your vaccine development program. While TPP is extensively used in industry, researchers and developers in academia are less familiar with the need to develop a TPP or how it can benefit development of their vaccine candidates.

At the satellite, participants worked in small groups under the guidance of experts to create a TPP for a hypothetical HIV vaccine candidate. Through this hands-on exercise, participants learned about the complexities of TPP development to better understand the advantages that the document can provide for the development process. The experts included Jim Ackland (Global Biosolutions), Charla Andrews (NIAID), Jane Halpern (NIAID), Dagna Laufer (IAVI), and Sanjay Phogat (Sanofi Pasteur).